populous
Americanadjective
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full of residents or inhabitants, as a region; heavily populated.
-
jammed or crowded with people.
There's no more populous place than Times Square on New Year's Eve.
-
forming or comprising a large number or quantity.
Because of epidemics the tribes are not nearly so populous as they once were.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of populous
1400–50; late Middle English populus < Latin populōsus. See people, -ous
Explanation
A populous place is full of people. If you left your cabin in the Maine woods to spend the weekend in New York City, you'd be particularly aware of how populous the city is. Anything that's dense with people can be described as populous, like the country of China or the city of Mumbai or even a crowded airport. Populous is a Latin word that means simply "people." It was adopted by English in the 15th century to mean "full of people." The adjective populous is easy to confuse with the noun populace, "the people who live in a country," especially since they are homonyms, or words that sound exactly the same.
Vocabulary lists containing populous
Much Ado: Synonyms for "Many"
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We the People: Popul
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"Othello" by William Shakespeare, Act IV-V
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Australia's most populous state will launch a gun buyback scheme later this year, becoming the first to offer cash in exchange for firearms in the wake of the Bondi Beach terror attack.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
Numbats were once populous across the bottom half of the continent, but Dryandra Woodland – in the south-western corner of Australia – is one of the few places they remain.
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026
The move rekindled a long-running debate over food and religion in the world's most populous country, with critics accusing the government of trying to turn schoolchildren vegetarian.
From Barron's ● Jul. 30, 2026
The Houthis seized control of the Yemeni capital in 2014, along with much of Yemen’s populous northwest.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
In other words, the Americas were immeasurably busier, more diverse, and more populous than researchers had previously imagined.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
